Celebrate Black History Month by learning about black-owned rum brands and contributing to spreading awareness and increasing equity amongst the community. We are highlighting six great black-owned rum brands that are making a difference by creating excellent rum. These brands not only work to establish themselves as outstanding rum producers, but they also support a number of projects to build up communities. Discover these rums now, but be sure to enjoy and support them all year round!

Sangar Rum

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Mike Sehzue started Sangar Rum after visiting his father’s home country of Liberia in 2010. He witness a country that was struggling after a 14-year-long civil war. This inspired him to work to stimulate Liberia’s economy by creating a positive financial and environmental impact along with working to support the community. Sehzue looked to his family’s sugarcane plantation with 100+ years of beverage production experience. He saw the potential for creating a global enterprise for rum made from natural resources in West Africa. The result was the founding of Miseh Distilling in Nimba County, Liberia, and the establishment of the first exported Liberian rum.

Sangar Rum uses freshly pressed sugarcane juice with no additives. It is handcrafted using organic ingredients and is inspired by the traditional Liberian “Cane-juice.” The white rum is proofed down to 40% ABV. A portion of all sales goes to impact projects and building up Nimba County. 

Ten to One

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Ten to One’s founder, Marc Farrell is on a mission to elevate and broaden people’s perspective of what rum is. Born and raised in the Caribbean, Farrell has an impressive background starting out on the island of Trinidad to becoming the youngest Vice President in Starbucks’ history.

His experience shows since Ten to One has exploded in popularity in just a few short years. The brand has also garnered celebrity investors like Ciara, who became a co-owner in 2021.The core line includes a White Rum made from an unaged blend of rum from the Dominican Republic and Jamaican rum. This rum is proofed down to 45% ABV. The core line also includes a 40% ABV Dark Rum that contains a blend of 8-year-old Barbados and Dominican rums along with Jamaican and Trinidadian rum. 

In celebration of Black History Month, Ten to One has partnered with artist Devin B. Johnson to create a limited Artist Edition rum. The rum is a 43% ABV version of the brand’s Dark Rum. A portion of the sales from this rum will support ARTNOIR. This organization advocates for artists of color globally. 

Equiano Rum Co.

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The Global Rum Ambassador himself, Ian Burrell started Equiano with three business partners in 2019. The brand claims to be the first African and Caribbean rum that is made with a blend of rums produced by Gray’s Distillery in Mauritius and Foursquare Rum Distillery in Barbados. 

The brand’s name is derived from Olaudah Equiano, who was an enslaved African and eventually became an abolitionist partially responsible for ending the British slave trade in 1807. Part of Equiano’s story was his ability to liberate himself by selling rum. The blend of African and Bajan rums pays homage to Equiano’s journey from Africa to Barbados in the 18th century. In the spirit of Equino, this brand works with an international human rights charity called Anti-Slavery International which works to eliminate modern slavery. 

Equiano’s standard rum is made in limited batches and bottled at 43% ABV. It is matured in ex-Cognac and ex-Bourbon barrels. 

Halo 7

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Halo 7 rum was started by two best friends and god sisters, Ashley Jackson and JeNai Stanley, seeking to honor their Caribbean ancestry. The distillery is based in Chicago with the goal of providing a luxury experience to customers.

Currently, the distillery offers a single rum. The 35% ABV rum is flavored with coconut and other natural flavorings. The flavorings are meant to mimic the complex and full-bodied spirit of an aged rum. Halo 7 rum flies off the shelves in the Chicago area, but online ordering will resume in March of this year.

Legendaire Peach Tea Rum

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Out of Houston, Texas comes Legendaire Peach Tea Rum, the first rum of its kind on the market. Broderick Robinson, CEO of Legendaire, started the brand to create generational wealth and to provide a new style of rum on the market. The goal of the brand is to create a non-profit that will help provide communities of color with educational programs, business insight, and other contributions to help build better living conditions.  

This new rum blends Texas tea leaves with the taste of ripe peaches to create a flavor reminiscent of the summer season’s finest fruit harvest. Although the flavor brings back fond memories of summer the drink can be enjoyed any time of year. 

Clutch Distilling

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Clutch Distilling was started in 2020 by Eric Worrell. Although Worrell’s father was from Barbados and rum was a part of his upbringing, he didn’t really get a passion for distilling until later in life after he started traveling. The Houston, Texas-based brand came to being when Worrell’s fiance was diagnosed with Lupus and distilling became a way to help pay the bills. To this day, Worrell tries to use his platform as a business owner to help raise awareness and money for the Lupus Foundation. 

Currently, Clutch Distilling has three rums as part of its core range. The unaged rum is called Chandelier which is bottled at 40% ABV. Worrell also makes 24 Karat Spiced Rum and Shne N Grind Coffee Rum. 

For a list of black-owned gins read more here.

Read Next:

Rum With a Cause: Visiting Clutch Distilling in Houston, Texas

The 7 Best Places to Drink Rum in New Orleans

Avatar’s Zoe Saldaña Says Mamajuana Spiced Rum ‘Celebrates Something Authentically Dominican’

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